This information was disclosed to the public during MoBSE and stakeholders forum which was held at the ministry’s conference hall on Thursday in Banjul.
The current nature of the Covid-19 case in the country, according to educationists, makes it unsafe for MoBSE and its stakeholders to presently announce the general reopening of 2020-2021 academic year.
They explained that things need to be put in place accordingly to ensure that all schools reopen safely in compliance with the Ministry of Health and WHO Covid-19 safety protocols.
According to MoBSE officials, public will be kept informed as to when exactly schools will reopen generally, adding that the safety of students and teachers are paramount to the ministry and its stakeholders.
“Anytime schools reopen, ministry and its stakeholders would insist on full adherence to Covid-19 protocols within the schools. This was why during the early part of the outbreak of the virus, MoBSE undertook a massive mobilisation of Covid-19 PPE to ensure that grades 9 and 12 students resumed classes and sit to their exams in an atmosphere of safety."
The ministry and its stakeholders are calling on the public to ignore the fake news on social media about the general reopening of schools which according to rumors was set on 15 September.
According to MoBSE officials, the public need to listen to the ministry and its stakeholders as they are the rightful institutions to inform the public as to when schools will reopen throughout the country.
It would be recalled that the government of The Gambian in March 2020 directed the closure of all schools after the country recorded its first case of Covid-19. The general closure brought all academic activities in the country to a halt.
By Lamin B. Darboe
Information Officer, MoBSE
